The Seven Dwarfs and Gracie

The green (Chelonia mydas) nest is finally hatching, but it's been a little odd as hatchlings emerge in small waves.



The greens are easily distinguished from our loggerheads and Kemp's by their smooth-nosed profiles...



and brilliant white bellies.



This group seems to have emerged a little early, perhaps pushed out by more rambunctious siblings.



Three still have distinct belly folds...



and one is just a little bit pale.



One little guy, Doc, does seem ready to go,



though he can't find his way out! How's that for a traffic jam?

I took six of the dwarfs to turtle rehab at the Gulfarium, where they will receive care for the next 24 hours, and will be encouraged to swim tomorrow.



For now, Dopey, Sleepy, Sneezy, Happy, Bashful, and Grumpy are all separated,



in coolers of damp sand,



tucked in with sand blankets from their original nest,



and resting until they seem more active.



Derrick, Amanda, Rachel and Marcy at the Gulfarium will provide water and other nutrients if necessary, until they're ready to go, like Doc (photo above).

It's good to know they are in capable hands...



Clover, our rescued green from last year, is still living with the folks at the Gulfarium as well, and she's gotten so big.



Maybe she'll swim free soon as well!

Good Turtle News!

This little guy, "Loco" (aka YYN 568), is ready to be set free! The folks at the Gulfarium say that he's an escapee from the TED research program in Galveston. He was close to shore looking for handouts because he left before he'd completed his pre-release training program and didn't know how to forage effectively.



I know this little loggerhead (Caretta caretta) had a great will to live when I met him two weeks ago. If all goes well, Mark, Monica, Michelle, Sally and I will be able to release him offshore of where Mark and I retrieved him. It should be fun!

Good News/Bad News

I called the Gulfarium today to check on our most recent live sea turtle strandings. Clover, the Chelonia mydas Mark and his sons rescued last summer, is still there and doing well. She's grown by leaps and bounds and they're still hoping to release her. For now, they are fitting her with a weighted prosthetic of sorts that will help her learn to swim properly (aka 'not swim with her butt in the air'). If she can't learn to dive, she can't be released as wild green sea turtles graze on sea grass beds, so they really have to dive! She may still need surgery to correct her two dislocated hips.



Gracie wasn't so lucky. When Jennifer and I brought the large female Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) in on New Year's Day, she was covered in barnacles and polychaetes and algae. She had lost her right front flipper to fishing gear entanglement and had severe cuts on the remaining front flipper. She was lucky that Grace, a Starbuck's barista in Gulf Breeze, was able to get her out of the cold Gulf of Mexico on New Year's Eve to get her some much needed medical attention.



When I went to visit in January, Gracie was doing really well! They had cleaned her carapace of all the marine hitchhikers and wrapped her flippers in pretty green bandages as they knew I was coming to visit (she was not on public display). She wasn't eating well, but seemed to be regaining strength otherwise. They started to force feed her and were concerned when her white blood cell count was elevated. The vet performed surgery, but found that the remaining bone in her injured flipper was dead and infected; the infection was apparently too much for her body to handle, and Gracie passed away.



Hearing that broke my heart. I really do love my turtles. You would too if you could look into their eyes and understand the struggles they've already faced, and the apparent turtle-wisdom gained. This powerful, fortunate and seasoned animal had overcome countless obstacles just to grow out of the hatchling stage. Reaching maturity and old age required decades of growth, long migrations, years of nesting activity and unimaginable demonstrations of strength and perseverance. I have so much respect for these turtles and their arduous journey through the wild seas.

Gracie was a champion, and her passing saddens me greatly. There are so few Kemp's left that each mature female has a tremendous impact on the species survival. As a large adult, Gracie had likely already nested for years and replaced herself in the population, reaching a measure of Darwinian success, but her loss is still a loss. Turtles are truly magnificent creatures. Guess that's why I've spent my life trying to help them survive...

Clover and Gracie

Another cold, rainy Saturday at the office inspired me to go check on our two live strandings from this year -- meet the girls...

Clover is a green sea turtle with dislocated hips and a broken pelvis. When Mark and his sons rescued her, she was tiny and dark green.



Jennifer, Monica and I took her to the Gulfarium for rehab that very day. In the seven or eight months she's been in Destin, she's doubled in size, and lightened a lot in color. They're not sure what's causing that -- they are modifying her diet to see if they can change it. They may try to correct her badly healed hip/pelvis injury at Mote Marine Lab, but haven't yet. That will determine whether or not she is 'permanently disabled' and unreleasable.



Gracie, a large female Kemp's ridley, lost a flipper and had some severe cuts from fishing line entanglement. She was covered in barnacles, algae, worms and other marine organisms.



Grace Periera and her family brought the turtle to the Coast Guard Station in Pensacola on New Years Eve, where Jennifer and I picked her up for evaluation and care. Gracie is now doing very well -- she's swimming eight hours a day in a heated pool, diving and resting a lot. The staff at the Gulfarium removed her barnacle load (it can slow down a turtle!) so her carapace is clean and clear. So far, she's refusing to eat and is about ten pounds underweight for a Kemp's of her size. We're hoping she'll be released and continue nesting for many more years.



The people at the Gulfarium are wonderful! They always willingly take on any injured sea turtle or dolphin we rescue from the park or Pensacola Beach. What a fantastic resource! This lovely loggerhead is another animal they're caring for after a boat strike damaged her carapace. As a permanently disabled turtle, she'll be a permanent resident at the Gulfarium. They deserve all of our support for the great work they do!